Standoff at the last major "O-Mission" before the Others retreated for a period.

An "O-Mission" refers to a mission of the Others, which usually includes a combination of Ben, Richard, Tom and other members sent on infiltration or military operations.

“

ANA LUCIA: They came the first night that we got here and took three of us. Nothing happened for two weeks, then they came back and took nine more. They're smart, and they're animals, and they could be anywhere at any time. Now we're moving through the jungle - their jungle - just so you can save your little hick friend over here. And if you think that one gun and one bullet is going to stop them - think again. So shut your mouth and keep moving.

”

Contents

Definition

To be considered an "O-Mission", at least one Other must be responsible for the idea of performing the mission, though one or more members of the "A-Team,", "B-Team" or Freighter may support this plan. Additionally, any of the base members of the Others: Ben, Richard, Tom, Bea and Pryce may assume leadership of a mission. This number has been supplemented from time to time as Ethan, Goodwin, Mikhail and Pickett have been called upon by Ben or Richard to serve the interests of the Others.

An "O-Mission" is further defined here as an individual or strike team targeting an individual or group of individuals for capture (in the case of the survivors) or elimination (in the case of the mercenary team).

The term for a primary or main survivors mission is an "A-Mission," the term for a supportive or independent survivors mission is a "B-Mission," the term for an Others mission is an "O-Mission" and the term for a Freighter mission is an "F-Mission." Each are interpreted as reactions usually counter to the goals of "O-Missions."

Members

Richard has been a strong presence within the hierarchy of the Others though only rarely has he been seen in an unquestioned leadership position. He has remained a strong spiritual leader to the less prominent members of the Others and remains as a check to any "O-Mission" he feels is not the wisest choice.

Ben was the newly appointed leader of the Others following the Purge in 1992 when the DHARMA Initiative was wiped out by the "Hostiles." During his time, and due largely in part to the crash of Oceanic 815 over the Island, he has organized nearly every "O-Mission."

Juliet initially worked as a fertility specialist within the Others, where she was slowly broken down by Ben, resulting in her coercion into several "O-Missions." She eventually gave her allegiance to the survivors when she tired of Ben forcing her to live his dream.

Dogen has a strong communion with the Island and is an Other charged with leading the Others taking refuge at the Temple. He does this by speaking only in Japanese to his people, effectively separating himself from them so they follow his command in protecting the Island from forces that would destroy it.

Lennon is Dogen's translator to separate his status from that of the rest of the Others. He resides at the Temple and engages in "O-Missions" productive toward protecting the Temple stronghold and the Island.

Tom served as the voice of the Others in their personal interactions with the survivors and laid down the terms of "the line" that should not be crossed in order to maintain their tense "understanding." He served primarily on extraction and kidnapping missions, often at the behest of Ben, Klugh, or Pryce.

Pickett was in control of the Others security detail at the time of the crash of Oceanic Flight 815 in which he often participated in missions to capture and guard survivors of the crash at the behest of his superiors. He was seen to be in command of subordinate Others such as Jason, Ivan, Matthew, and Luke before he was murdered by Juliet.

Ethan was the skilled surgeon of the Others who worked very closely with fertility specialist Juliet before he was ordered by Ben to inflitrate the middle-section survivors' camp to compile a list and report back to him. Although he served Ben's will in several "O-Missions," his rogue, aggressive nature led him to act outside the jurisdiction of his superiors.

Goodwin was an Other involved romantically with Juliet, resulting in Ben's jealousy and his sending of Goodwin to the tail-section survivors to compile a list and report back to him. He was instrumental in the kidnapping of many Tailies due to his charming facade.

Mikhail was an extreme loyalist of Ben who manned the Flame station for the Others. He was called upon by Ben to maintain communication with the outside world due to lone nature and unyielding resolve to put himself in mortal danger for the Others.

Day 1-44 (Season 1)

The first 44 days of the Oceanic Flight 815survivors on the Island was supplanted with the ominous threat of the Others. While it was a subtle presence for the mid-section survivors, it was an aggressive presence for the tail section. This established the "O-Mission" as being one of stealth or infiltration being masterminded by Benjamin Linus at the DHARMA InitiativeBarracks with forces showing up intermittently to terrorize the survivors respective beach camps. The primary "O-Missions" in Day 1-44 consisted of Ethan and Goodwin being planted in the mid-section and tail section camps, respectively, as well as fixation on abducting survivors for unknown purposes (specifically children)...

Infiltrate the Mid-Section

Infiltrate the Mid-Section

Outcome:Half-Accomplished; Ethan successfully co-habitated with the survivors for two weeks, but was eventually discovered to be a spy before he could make his list of the middle section survivors.

Relation to Lost storyline: When some of the survivors moved to the caves, Ethan followed them and tried to test Claire's pregnancy to make sure that the baby was not sick as so many had been on the Island before. Yet, when Claire woke up in the middle of the injection, Ethan was forced to retreat and Claire became convinced that someone was trying to hurt her and her baby. Hurley took it upon himself to take a census of the middle section survivors, and compared it with the manifest from the plane that Sawyer had. When Ethan realized that a census was being taken, he realized that it was only a matter of time before the survivors realized he wasn't on the plane.

Relation to Lost storyline:Goodwin established himself more predominantly in the tail section campsite than Ethan, but he still gained the trust of Ana Lucia, the de facto leader of the Tailies. The list was successfully made by Goodwin regarding the tail section and sent to the Barracks for further examination. The first night, the threats were to be removed so that the Others could move in at a later date and take only the "good people."

Kidnap the Tailies

Kidnap the Tailies

Outcome:Half-Accomplished, although many of the tail-section survivors were successfully abducted, the remaining survivors soon moved inland and disappeared from the Others' radar.

Background: Once Goodwin had sent the list of the Tailies back to the Barracks, the “good people” were to be abducted. First, however, the stronger members of the camp had to be captured and neutralized so that the remainders could be easily taken. Although Eko killed two of them, three Tailies were missing the next day.

Relation to Lost storyline: On the 12th day, the Others moved into the tail section’s camp and took all the people on the list, including the kids. Ana Lucia killed one of the invading Others and pulled a pocket knife and list from her pocket. This confirmed Ana Lucia’s suspicions that the beach was not safe and that the signal fire had to be extinguished. To keep his cover, Goodwin relented.

Kidnap Charlie and Claire

Kidnap Charlie and Claire

Outcome:Half-Accomplished; despite warnings from Ethan to go back, Kate and Jack persisted in their pursuit and found Charlie hung by his neck from a bundle of vines in the tree, yet Claire was nowhere to be found

Background: As soon as it became apparent that the survivors were taking a census and he knew his name would not appear on the manifest, Ethan moved further from the camp to keep an eye on Claire. A frantic Charlie then came running through the jungle, calling for help and telling Ethan to go find Jack since Claire was having serious contractions. Ethan pretended to go run for help but instead doubled back and surprised the two, staring vacantly at Claire, the newest pregnant woman on the Island since the rest had died from infection.

Relation to Lost storyline:Jack, Kate, Locke, and Boone proceeded after Claire when it became apparent from Hurley's census that Ethan was not on the plane. They found the remnants of a struggle and a drag trail, so the four split up into two teams (Jack/Kate, Locke/Boone) to track the abduction. Jack found Ethan after following his trail but was beaten down and told to stop following the trail. Jack pressed on and found an unconscious Charlie hanging from a tree by neck, apparently dead. Ethan had abducted Claire successfully. Charlie was eventually resuscitated but Claire was not seen for a week.

Background:Claire had previously escaped from the Others' custody after spending a week highly sedated and under observation. Ethan had grown attached to Claire and refused to accept this failure, and so he acted on his own to take her back from the survivors and re-infiltrated the beach camp to deliver this message to Charlie.

Relation to Lost storyline: Before he could successfully kidnap Claire and bring her back to the Staff, Ethan was ambushed by the "A-Team" and executed by Charlie. Ethan's death brought the first severe casualty of the Others out of the tension with the survivors. News of his death prompted Juliet to beg Ben to allow Goodwin to return home, as well as cost the Others their very skilled surgeon.

Background: With the realization that the Others knew their position, Ana Lucia ordered her people to extinguish the signal fire on the beach and trek inland through the jungle to avoid further victimization. It was around this time, nearly a month into their time on the Island, that Ana Lucia began to suspect Nathan, a fellow survivor, of being "one of them" and imprisoned him in the tiger pit she had built specifically to interrogate him. He was later released in the night by Goodwin who promptly snapped his neck before he could reveal that Goodwin was the spy of the Others.

Relation to Lost storyline: The Tailies had by now disappeared from the Others, who were having trouble tracking them and monitoring their progress across the Island. When Ana Lucia realized Goodwin was never on the plane, she confronted him and killed him with a stake to the chest. Although the Others failed to relocate the Tailies' position in the jungle, a recon team led by Tom and Pickett came across the dead body of Goodwin, reporting it to Ben. Ben, now annoyed by Juliet pressing for Goodwin's return from assignment, brought her out to the spot where Goodwin had been killed and showed her his body. As she wept over it and accused Ben of sending Goodwin to his death, Ben told her that she was disrespectful to him by being involved with Goodwin to begin with. Since he brought her to the Island, she is "his." Goodwin's body remained there, and was stumbled upon by Jin and Eko as they attempted to return to the survivors' beach camp.

Background: In order to reach a shipping lane and contact the outside world, the survivors constructed and launched a raft crewed by Michael, Sawyer, Jin, and Walt. While the raft sailed undisturbed for almost an entire day, it was eventually intercepted by a small boat crewed by what appeared to be fisherman. These "fisherman" were actually the Others who had come specifically for "the boy," as the Whispers had alluded to (according to Danielle).

Relation to Lost storyline: When the boat stopped and the captain told them that they would "have to take the boy." When Michael refused to turn his son over to these people, Tom turned off their search light and things took a dark turn from there: Sawyer reached for his gun and was shot off the raft, Jin dove in after him, and the Twins board the raft. They beat up Michael, grab Walt, and knock Michael off the raft as they put Walt onto their boat. The Others finish off the survivors by throwing a Molotov cocktail onto the raft, blowing it up in the middle of the ocean..

Season Breakdown

Season 1 - Percentage Successful

25.0% (1/4)

Season 1 - Percentage Half-accomplished

50.0% (2/4)

Season 1 - Percentage Failed

25.0% (1/4)

Season 2

The beginning of Season 2 ties up the transition from Season 1. With Walt in their custody, the Others slowly begin to realize that he is more "special" than they had previously realized and many are afraid to be in the same room as him. With the tail section survivors terrified by the numerous abductions by the Others when they first got to the Island, the survivor faction as a whole begins to rebel against these invisible enemies. As the survivors venture into the DHARMA stations and cover more territory on the Island, the Others begin to feel more threatened by their "guests" and deliver a message for them to stay away. But that all changes once their leader, Benjamin Linus, is captured incidentally in one of Danielle Rousseau's nets and the survivors find him...

Background: With Jack, Locke, and Sawyer in hot pursuit of Michael, the Others paused their captive escort and waited until nightfall to surround the survivors' hunting party and deliver a message. THis was designed to warn them to stop intruding on the Island and not advance too far inland (likely because they would find the security perimeter and the Barracks).

Relation to Lost storyline: While Michael was held prisoner by Alex and Pickett in the shadows, Tom forced the consent of the survivors, who left their guns and returned to their beach camp. Alex asked Michael if Claire was safe and if she had her baby, much to Michael's surprise.

Relation to Lost storyline: While at Pala Ferry, Jack, Kate, Sawyer, and Hurley are marched in with their hands bound and bags on their heads to meet with “Henry” who has revealed himself to be the leader of the Others. Michael and Walt are given the fishing boat to depart in, and Hurley is let go to deliver the message to stay away to the survivors. Jack, Kate and Sawyer are kept with the Others.

Season Breakdown

Season 1 - Percentage Successful

50.0% (5/10)

Season 1 - Percentage Half-accomplished

20.0% (2/10)

Season 1 - Percentage Failed

30.0% (3/10)

Season 3

Steal the Elizabeth

Steal the Elizabeth

Outcome:Half-Accomplished, the boat was stolen, but Colleen was killed

Background: When Ryan radioed in to tell Colleen that the survivors had a sailboat, Ben ordered her to steal it.

Discoveries: Sun will protect herself at any cost

Relation to Lost storyline:Ben instructed Colleen to get the boat back from the mid-section survivors. She took a team out in order to do so, and the team boarded the boat, only to find Sun was on it. Sun had a gun, and used it to shoot Colleen. ("The Glass Ballerina")

Background: After Pickett attempted to execute Sawyer, the tables were turned when Kate and Sawyer escaped.

Discoveries: Juliet's deception

Relation to Lost storyline: After Sawyer's execution failed, Kate and Sawyer attacked Danny and Jason and escaped from the cages area in the Hydra station. Ivan was sent by Juliet to help Danny and Jason, and to go after the fugitives.

The trio chased after them, but lost them when Alex hid them in her hideout. They eventually came to the Hydra facility, where Aldo the guard, told them Sawyer, Kate and Alex had managed to rescue Karl from room 23 and ran away.
Danny continued to chase after them, and eventually found them on the beach. At this point, he was shot and killed by Juliet.

Background: With the submarine destroyed and Jack’s rescue party failed in its efforts, Ben saw an opportunity to re-infiltrate the survivors camp after the loss of Ethan.

Discoveries: Sun’s pregnancy

Relation to Lost storyline: Ben planned with Juliet to defect into the survivors group and cure Claire as a token of goodwill. Juliet was to record messages on a tape recorder in the Staff on a regular basis until a week later when the Others would invade the beach camp and take all confirmed pregnant women. Juliet, however, would betray the Others by revealing their plan to Jack and siding with the Losties.

Background: Ben, shaken after his experience with Locke at the Cabin, changes the plan and moves the timetable up on the capture of the middle section survivors’ pregnant women. He tells Pryce of the change and orders a full-scale invasion of the camp a day early. Pryce takes his best men and heads out.

Discoveries: Many of the Others do not trust Ben, Juliet and Alex betrayed Ben

Relation to Lost storyline: With Juliet revealing the Others’ plans to Jack, the survivors camp (with aid from Danielle Rousseau) stashed three piles of dynamite in each of the three tents Juliet marked for the Others to focus on in their raid. The survivors expedite their plan when Karl (under orders from Alex to warn them) told the survivors that the Others were coming that night, not the next day. Sayid, Bernard, and Jin elect to stay behind and shoot at the dynamite, while Jack moves the rest of the survivors to the radio tower. Not anticipating their knowledge of the raid, Pryce and his men fall right into the trap and suffer massive casualties when the dynamite is discharged. Only Pryce, Tom, and Jason survive, managing to take the three remaining survivors hostage in the process. No pregnant women were captured whatsoever.

Background: With seven of their people dead, Tom angrily communicates this update to Ben, who tells them to hold on to Sayid, Jin, and Bernard as hostages and not to kill them yet.

Discoveries: Ben’s bluff, DHARMA van, Juliet’s betrayal

Relation to Lost storyline: Under orders from Ben to fire three rounds into the sand, Tom and Pryce keep the hostages alive but under close watch. Sawyer and Juliet sneak back into camp to free their friends but have no guns. Suddenly, the two are surprised by Hurley, who has also come back and has commandeered the DHARMA van they found a week ago. Hurley runs over Pryce, causing Jason and Tom to scatter. Sayid trips Jason and snaps his neck with his legs all while bound and gagged. Juliet holds Tom at gunpoint and Sawyer delivers the final blow, executing an unarmed Tom as he surrenders for taking Walt off the raft.

Discoveries:Bonnie and Greta are secretly in charge of the station, Juliet betrayed Ben, Ben has been blocking communications from off the Island.

Relation to Lost storyline:Mikhail shoots at Desmond who is still in the outrigger, prompting him to swim down to the moon pool and Mikhail gives chase. The Looking Glass receives a message from Ben, which Mikhail answers. Under new orders from Ben, Mikhail kills Greta, shoots Bonnie, and is about to execute her when Desmond reappears and harpoons Mikhail through the chest. Mikhail regains consciousness, and appears with a grenade outside the porthole in the room where Charlie has just deactivated the jamming signal. He releases it and kills them both.

Background: After learning that seven of Pryce’s men were killed during the beach raid, and that the survivors have disappeared, Ben realizes that he must act now if he is to save the Island. He takes Alex with him to intercept the survivors on their way to the radio tower.

Discoveries: Identity of Alex's biological mother, Locke wants to stay on the Island

Relation to Lost storyline: Jack keeps his promise to Sayid by letting them “die” so Ben's con is rendered useless. Ben is taken prisoner by the survivors who end up deactivating the Looking Glass signal and contract Naomi's ship, despite a last minute intervention by Locke taking Naomi out with a knife to the back.

Background: In his last effort to save the Island, Ben sets off to intercept the survivors en route to the radio tower. Before he leaves, he places Richard Ben proceeds to the radio tower, he tells Richard to lead the Others to the Temple, apparently a task they had already discussed beforehand.

Relation to Lost storyline: The Temple is strictly for the Others and is the safest place for their people if Ben should fail in his mission. When Naomi’s ship is ultimately contacted, Richard is currently leading the Others to the Temple. Ben states four days later in "The Shape of Things to Come" that the Others are at the Temple by this time.

Relation to Lost storyline: By journeying to the Orchid, Ben assumed full responsibility for protecting the Island and acquiesced to the harsh situation by agreeing to "move the Island," which would lead to his inevitable banishment from it.

Relation to Lost storyline: By signalling for aid, Ben accepted that he could not handle the mercenary team on his own and requested additional support to stealth them so he could safely surrender upon reaching the Orchid.

Capture Kate and Sayid

Mission: Capture Kate and Sayid and lead them to an as of now unknown place.

Corresponding A-Mission: None

Corresponding F-Mission: None

Background:Ben communicates with one of the Others with a mirror, after this Kate and Sayid encounter Richard Alpert in the Jungle and are taken prisoner by the rest of the Others, who reappear in their ragged clothes.

Background: Correct in their assumption, Ben, Locke, and Hurley discover the mercenaries already in position at the Orchid. Knowing he has incoming support, Ben steps into the main area of the destroyed greenhouse and surrenders.

Discoveries: None

Relation to Lost storyline: The mercenary team accepts Ben's surrender and Keamy pistol whips him into submission. The team, believing their mission to be complete, then escorted their prisoner back to the helicopter.

Background: As the "last resort" to save the Island from the threat of the Freighter, Ben and Locke travel to the secret station beneath the Orchid greenhouse. After killing Keamy who returned to claim Ben, Locke is told to by Ben to go lead the Others while Ben goes to move the Island and suffer permanent expulsion.

Relation to Lost storyline: As Ben dons a DHARMA parka, he overloads the micro-wave emitter to blow a hole in the station wall to reach the ancient ante-chamber hidden behind it. He travels down a narrow tunnel and into a frozen room with a massive wheel built into the side of a wall. Upon turning it, the Island vanishes from sight and all those within the barrier move with it.

Relation to Lost storyline: On their way Aldo tries to help Kate remember she knocked him out earlier. Kate then knocks out both of the others and leaves them lying there, going to the barracks by herself. When they wake up they track Jin and Aldo tries to shoot him, but Justin is captured and Aldo killed by Claire.